Universal Pleasers - Harvest Corn Pudding

September 25, 2016

Today is the 170th anniversary of our church. It is a beautiful little church with marvelous stained glass windows, dark wooden pews, and red carpet. There have been many happy and sad occasions held at our church. The blessing of our marriage, baptisms of our children, and funerals for my husband’s grandparents, father, uncle, and many other family and friends. My husband’s grandfather was clergy there, and my husband’s mother plays the church organ. There is a beautiful stained-glass window of St. Cecilia behind the organ dedicated in memory of my husband’s grandparents, father, and in honor of his mother’s long-standing service as the church organist. On Sunday mornings when the light streams in, St. Cecilia takes on a warm, glow that words don’t justify.

After the worship service, the congregation is holding a potluck in the parish hall as part of the anniversary celebration. Potlucks can be a bit tricky, but I have just the dish. I call my Harvest Corn Pudding recipe a “universal pleaser.” Universal pleasers are dishes that please a variety of tastes from children to adults--not too garlicky, not too oniony, and not too spicy, but still quite tasty. Harvest Corn Pudding tastes good served at room temperature and even better if heated a little. I am looking forward to worship, food, and fellowship later this morning.

I am not sure where my mom got this recipe but years ago she gave it to me to bake because she knew it was easy and would turn out good regardless of my skill level. The great thing about this recipe is that there is no prep work required. Just have all ingredients within arm’s length and stir, pour, bake, enjoy!

Harvest Corn Pudding

Preheat oven to 350^o F

1 Stick Butter (1/4 pound) I used salted butter because it is what I had on hand but unsalted would also work fine.

1 Can 15 ounces Whole Kernel Corn (Do not drain)

1 Can 14.75 ounces Cream Corn (Do not drain)

1 Cup Sour Cream (or one 8 oz. container)

1 Box Corn Muffin Mix with ¼ cup of the mix removed (save it for pecan pie)

1/8 tsp chili powder

Here's what you need to begin.

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350^o F.

Put the stick of butter in a microwave safe mixing bowl and melt it in the microwave (Since I am not a real chef, I see no need to melt it in a pan on the stovetop.) While the butter is melting spray the cooking dish (I used a 13 in. by 11 in. glass dish) with cooking spray, open the 2 cans of corn, and measure out 1 cup of sour cream.

Step 2

Add the 2 cans of corn and the cup of sour cream to the melted butter and stir the mixture until well combined.

Step 3

Add the corn muffin mix and 1/8 tsp of chili powder (this is optional) to the mix and stir until well combined. If you don’t remove about ¼ cup of the muffin mix, the mixture will be too thick and more like cornbread than soft, luxurious pudding.

Step 4

Pour the mixture into the prepared dish and bake for 35-40 minutes at 350^o F.

Here’s what it looks like when it’s done. It will be a tiny bit brown around the edges and still soft. Always remember to use potholders. There is no more important safety rule than to use potholders when baking (yes, we are fans of Norm). Many chefs claim to have asbestos hands, but us non-chefs can easily get burned if we don’t follow proper safety protocol.